


A problem for another day

by Biket



Series: TsukkiYama Week 2020 [2]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: M/M, Neighbors, Pets, Pre-Relationship, TsukkiYama Week 2020, Tsukkiyama Week
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-24
Updated: 2020-08-24
Packaged: 2021-03-06 17:28:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,077
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26092633
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Biket/pseuds/Biket
Summary: Tsukishima truly loved his cat. But sometimes, he really hated him too.Like this one time when he had to break into his neighbor's apartment to get him back since the grumpy furball had befriended the overly sociable dog of the overly cute neighbor. What a day.
Relationships: Tsukishima Kei/Yamaguchi Tadashi
Series: TsukkiYama Week 2020 [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1892755
Comments: 3
Kudos: 90
Collections: TsukkiYama Week 2020





	A problem for another day

**Author's Note:**

> Day 2 of Tsukkiyama Week - Neighbors!  
> I didn't really know where I was going with this one but here we are so I hope you'll enjoy it (even though Tsukishima might be a bit OOC in there...)

Tsukishima loved his cat, really. 

Firefly wasn’t named like him for no reason after all. They shared the same calm demeanor, the same disdain for other beings as well as the same slightly curly blond hair. People - his brother especially, would joke and say this was the reason he had chosen to adopt him but the fact was that Tsukishima hadn’t really planned on doing so. He had found the poor animal in a box near the garbage cans reserved for his apartment’s complex. He still didn’t know which of his neighbors had the _great_ idea of letting the kitten all alone in the street but he had been about to commit murder at the time. How could people be so cruel?

He had taken care of the cat for two weeks, thinking he would find a family to adopt him since he was quite busy with his own life. He hadn’t really planned on getting attached to the cat and he definitely didn’t plan on buying him way too many toys to play with. In the end, he had realized he wouldn’t be able to give up on the animal even if it meant giving up on some sleep.

Over time, he had come to love the cat unconditionally. Tsukishima suspected he was projecting the loneliness he felt onto the poor animal who was his only friend at the moment. Well, not really his only friend but the only friend physically here with him. Some days it was quite hard, being caught up in his own head and he couldn’t count the times he had wanted to just give up on everything and go back home. Such childish ideas, he thought when he reflected back on it. But now he had Firefly with him and he wasn’t that lonely anymore. 

The only problem being the neighbor. 

At first, the blond didn’t think much about his neighbor except that he was cute and was quite a decent cook, at least for the cookies he had come to offer when he moved in next door. And he had a dog. A very friendly black Golden Retriever. Maybe a bit too friendly. The thing was, Yamaguchi - his neighbor, and Tsukishima’s balconies weren’t separated. There was just a poor excuse of a wall they could easily climb over and some plants Yamaguchi had put on his side to have a semblance of privacy. And the dog, even if he had seemed overall well-trained, had the bad habit of jumping over the little separation and come in Tsukishima’s apartment. 

This had caused Yamaguchi to come over more times than Tsukishima could count. But he couldn’t really complain as he got to know his neighbor better even though the situation was always a bit awkward when the overly happy dog was racing around the apartment, his swinging tail almost knocking everything down on his way. What Tsukishima didn’t expect, was for his cat to befriend the other animal. That was quite the surprise actually, given how Firefly behaved towards other human beings. He wasn’t grumpy per se, he just wasn’t the friendliest cat out there and he didn’t make any efforts to be likable, just like his owner. So when one day Tsukishima had come home and found Yamaguchi’s dog snuggled on the couch with his cat, both asleep, he hadn’t known what to do. Except closing his bay window next time.

Today was one of those days when he had realized too late that the window was still open when he left the comfort of his home and as he opened the door after a long day of work, he prayed for the dog not to be here. It’s not that he didn’t like him. Fluffy - what kind of name was that? - was the very definition of a ‘good boy’ but Tsukishima was too tired to deal with a giant mountain of muscles and, well, fluff. 

After looking everywhere inside the apartment and realizing Firefly wasn’t anywhere to be seen, Tsukishima panicked for a bit. His cat didn’t like to go outside that much and was, ironically, scared of heights. Being on the fourth floor had ensured he wouldn’t go on the balcony and jump out of nowhere to see if he had nine lives or not and Tsukishima had always been glad for it but today… What if his cat had decided to be a little more adventurous than normal? What if he had perched up on the edge of the balcony and had fallen down the four stories? Tsukishima shuddered at the thought and hurried past his bay window to anxiously squint at the ground a few meters below. There wasn’t any cat to be seen. A sigh of relief escaped his mouth.

Turning back, he noticed with a quick glance that his neighbor’s window what just like his own, wide open. Maybe the cat had gone over the low wall and met up with his friend? That would be quite out of character for him but he had been full of surprises lately so Tsukishima could expect anything.

For a few minutes, he wondered if breaking into Yamaguchi’s apartment was a bit too much or if he could benefit from extenuating circumstances. The other man didn’t seem to be there, Tsukishima hadn’t heard anything from where he was. Technically, what he was about to do was against the law. He could just go back inside and wait for Firefly to come back. But what if the cat wasn’t on the other side of Yamaguchi’s window? What if he had really fallen down and someone had already put his body away? 

Without thinking anymore, Tsukishima climbed over the little wall and pushed the window a bit further to slide into the apartment. Immediately, he felt like a complete idiot. What was he thinking? He was sure his neighbor wouldn’t hold it against him if he was home since he was the kind type. _Too kind for his own good._ He shouldn’t be doing this. He should go back to his own place and wait for his cat to come back. _But what if he’s not here?_ Since when had he began to care so much for the cat that he’d forgot how to behave like a normal human being? This wasn’t like him at all. He sighed. 

Looking around, Tsukishima couldn’t help but think that Yamaguchi’s home was nice. There were succulents almost everywhere to fill the space, and some colorful paint formed a messy yet beautiful pattern on one of the walls. He wasn’t about to go further into the place to see what he had done with it during his first month here, he wasn’t that careless. Neither was he stupid, contrary to his own belief at the moment. A sudden movement caught the attention of the blond. He tensed and turned to face the threat - even though he was the threatening one in this case but his mind had already stopped being rational a few minutes ago.

The dog. 

Fluffy was looking at him and Tsukishima swore that if dogs could frown, this one would be doing it right now. But he mustn’t have been perceived as a threat since the animal didn’t pay much attention to him past the two minutes of pure tension that felt like eternity to the blond. He sighed again. He was doing that a lot today. And then he frowned when he saw his cat snuggled against Fluffy’s side. So that’s where he went. 

A flare of anger went through him. He wasn’t really angry at his cat but more at himself. He really behaved like a fool, going to extents he shouldn’t have even think of but here he was. Grunting slightly, he leaned forward to grab Firefly and be done with it, hoping he could return to his own place before Yamaguchi would come back. He knew the other guy was always home a bit later than him but not by much.

That’s when he heard the door unlocking and saw, as he turned his head, Yamaguchi standing in the doorway, jaw dropped and eyes widened. 

Ahem.

As a matter of fact, intruding in your neighbor’s home fully dressed in black - he didn’t have time to change and didn’t think of what he looked like before going into full panic mode - and leaning over his animal with murder intent in your eyes wasn’t the most effective way of conveying reassuring energy. That was quite the opposite actually. It was only when Tsukishima heard Yamaguchi letting out a nervous chuckle that he decided to stand straight again. At least he had the decency of looking embarrassed. 

“I can explain,” he said.

Again, Tsukishima loved his cat.

But sometimes, he really hated him too. Especially when he was put in situations like this because of the stupid furball. _I’m the stupid one here_ , he thought. 

“Did you… You know what, nevermind. Let me just get changed, don’t run away and you’ll explain,” Yamaguchi said, sounding almost too calm. Was he always this calm when he stumbled upon a stranger in his house? Well, not really a stranger. And maybe this wasn’t a habit of his, that would be quite shitty but anyway. 

After a while of standing awkwardly in a living room he shouldn’t be in, Tsukishima felt relief wash all over him as he saw Yamaguchi come back from what he guessed to be his bedroom. He didn’t seem mad or anything, which was much better than what Tsukishima was imagining. He knew he deserved to be yelled at, at least. Honestly, if the roles had been reversed, he probably would have called the police right away.

“So. Do you usually break in someone else’s apartment to get your cat back instead of calling them?” Yamaguchi asked almost too casually.

“That’s my first time actually, otherwise I wouldn’t have been caught.” Tsukishima cursed himself. _Really? You couldn’t hold back the sarcastic response? You idiot._

To his surprise, Yamaguchi chuckled. Was he really okay with this?

“I’m sorry. I know what I did was wrong but if it’s any consolation, I was worried about my cat,” he explained as if his actions were absolutely normal.

“I see.” Yamaguchi hummed.

Tsukishima didn’t know what else to say. 

“I know what it’s like to worry about a pet but uh… Maybe next time you could wait for me to come home and then knock, please? I don’t intend on dying from a heart attack anytime soon,” he laughed again. 

“I’m sorry,” Tsukishima said again with the most apologetic look he had in his range of emotions. It wasn’t much but it was better than nothing. 

“It’s okay, really! Well, not really but it’s not like you’re a stranger or something.”

The silence grew between them as Tsukishima wondered what he could say. He was on the verge of just grabbing his cat and run away - not by the window this time, mind you - to avoid any further embarrassment. But he was a well-educated guy and could be decent when he wanted to be. 

“I’ll uh… I’ll go now, sorry for bothering you,” he said as if he hadn’t been caught doing something illegal. _Well played._ He grabbed his protesting cat and was about to leave the place. 

“Wait! Actually, would you uh… Would you like to have a key? I have a spare but no one to give it to and since this situation might happen again, it would be good for you to have it.” Yamaguchi said as Tsukishima reached the door. “Only if you want it, obviously!” he added in a haste.

“Oh. Yeah, why not?” Tsukishima wasn’t all sure about this but the other guy wasn’t wrong. His cat might disappear again and it would be good for him to be able to check if he was there or not without alerting the neighborhood with his sketchy ways of climbing over a balcony and sliding into someone else’s home. 

Yamaguchi took a few minutes to find the spare key but finally gave it to him with a smile and light blush on his cheeks. _Why is he so cute?_

“Goodbye then,” he said awkwardly, the cat shifting uncomfortably in his arms.

“Goodbye Tsukki!” Yamaguchi said cheerfully as he closed the door behind him.

Tsukishima would have been lying if the use of the nickname didn’t agitate some butterflies in his stomach. But that was a problem for another day.

**Author's Note:**

> Might just make a multi-chapter fic out of this, idk 🤔


End file.
